As the temp dropped from 36°C to 26°C + heavy rain, I found myself in front of the PS3 in need of a quick&easy, heart-warming dessert…

Skyrim themed vegan pastry for a gaming night in

SO, HUNGRY YET?

This isn’t going to be a food blog, really 😉
But I’ve always liked a good pie, tart, cake… from time to time, and this hasn’t changed much since I went dairy- and wheat-free. Now this game-inspired thing here is the healthiest option to make puff pastries I’ve found yet, so I want to share it.

With store-bought puff pastry (yeah, I cheat :P) obtainable in amazingly clean bio quality either vegan or wheat-free here in Germany, it would’ve been a shame not to try and bake pastries looking like they just came hot and freshly made from the kitchen of one of my Skyrim houses!

I used gluten-free/spelt puff paste. They come deep-frozen, 6 squares per package.

SKYRIM-SPIRATION…

The food variety in Skyrim is truly beyond lovely, no wonder there are blogs/sites over and over dedicated just to baking and cooking stuff. But since I’m a very lazy darn creative gournerd, I looked for an easy (and a vamped-up-sort-of-healthy) way to do so.

Berries are my favourite food, well, in the top five really, so no sweet roll for me, dear Skyrim bakers! So I love just how the Jazbay and Snowberry and Juniper berry crostata look in the game:

Now, a crostata is a pie-ish kind of pastry, a fruit tart, originally from Italy, made from shortcrust pastry and fruit or berries. Why a Skyrim (=northern) tart is called “crostata”… Maybe they just loved the sound of it? And who am I to ask for culinary accuracy – after all, puff pastry isn’t shortcrust either, but I reckon we can indulge in endless variations here, as long as it’s good and even not utterly unhealthy. Are you with me on that?

TRICKS OF A FAUX COOK – THE RECIPE

Baking these is freaking easy, you’re all set within 5 minutes, add about 12-15 minutes of baking and a few moments to cool…
Apart from the aforementioned deep-frozen pastry I have to prepare two things (all while the pastry gets a little thaw time):

1. BERRIES. While the oven heats up (follow frozen pastry instructions), I mix 1/2 cup of deep-frozen mixed berries* per crostata with 1 tablespoon liquid (natural, unfiltered apple juice is my go-to option, but all sirupy things will do the job too) + 2 tablespoons xylitol + a tiny pinch of salt. I then top off with spices to my liking, which depends. Sometimes it’s Herbaria’s “Kleene Lene” mix, sometimes it’s cardamome and ginger powder…
*I prefer a mix of organic blueberries, currant (red + black), raspberries, strawberries and blackberries which is just summertime, frozen.

2. SECRET FILLING.With the berries and the pastry thawing, it’s time to prep the secret filling. Normally, berry fillings sit in a creamy, custard-y base, but in a dairy-free home this isn’t an option. My fave base is a mix of 1 1/2 tablespoons organic almond butter with 1 tablespoon xylitol. Mix well.

3. ALMOST THERE. Now it’s time to assemble! Put the pastry sheets to the baking tray aligned with baking parchment. Put the almond paste to the centre of the pastry square, roll the edges to make a round shape (like a flat basket), fill in the berries. Bake for the time needed. Enjoy *omnomnom*

Waiting for their place under the sun… er, in the oven!This is as healthy as a puff pastry tart can get! Xylitol, berries, almonds… No sugar, and with the vegan puff paste it’s even free of trans fats. It’s of course not a breakfast option, but from time to time… Why not!

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